Chapter Summaries

Zhong Shan defeated the Great Jin Emperor in the Spiritual World and realized that relying on the Red Phoenix Heavenly Scripture had weakened his cultivation foundations. Meanwhile, Shui Wuhen’s army attacked Wild Duck City, and the chapter ended with a sinister group of experts heading toward the city.

• Zhong Shan’s Eight Extremes Heavenly Tail devoured the Great Jin Emperor’s Spiritual World and Primordial Spirit, raising Zhong Shan’s cultivation to the sixth level of the Nascent Soul Stage.
• Zhong Shan realized that he had become too dependent on the Red Phoenix Heavenly Scripture’s Beginning of Illusion Breaking and resolved not to use it unless his life was in danger.
• Zhong Shan shoved the Great Jin Emperor’s lifeless body to the ground, and the people around them witnessed his victory.
• Shui Wuhen led an army of eight hundred thousand against Wild Duck City while Zhong Shan fought the Great Jin Emperor in the Spiritual World.
• Se Kong recognized Zhong Shan as the attacker, handed the tiger tally to General Ma, and fled Wild Duck City to report to his master.
• A sinister leader among a group of thirty passing experts saw the disturbance above the Great Jin Imperial Dynasty and ordered his group to go toward it.

Shui Wuhen’s forces captured Wild Duck City as experts converged on the Imperial Palace and broke into the underground ritual chamber. Zhong Shan reunited with Bei Qing Si, then confronted a Marquis from the Great Li Heavenly Dynasty who tried to claim her, demanding that he kneel and apologize.

• Shui Wuhen’s army took Wild Duck City after its residents opened the gates, while outside experts searched for the source of the red light and Baleful Intent.
• An Evil Man led thirty experts to the Imperial Palace, where ten Emperor Realm experts shattered the formations protecting the underground chamber.
• Zhong Shan comforted Bei Qing Si after she wept in his arms, and the gathered Eternal Life Realm disciples stared in shock.
• The Evil Man’s group broke open the chamber and exposed its blood-filled altar, where Zhong Shan stood beside Bei Qing Si and the dead Great Jin Emperor.
• The Evil Man recognized Bei Qing Si and demanded that she become his bed-warming maid, prompting Zhong Shan to declare her his woman.
• After the Evil Man threatened Zhong Shan, Zhong Shan demanded that he kneel and apologize to Bei Qing Si.

Zhong Shan defeated the Evil Man, forced him to apologize to Bei Qing Si, and drove his followers away. He then asked Bei Qing Si to leave with him, but she stayed behind to fulfill her father’s wish and reclaim her family’s ancestral treasure by becoming the Water Lineage Master.

• Shui Wuhen reported that the main army inside the city had been wiped out, and Zhong Shan revealed his disguise before confronting the Evil Man.
• Zhong Shan overwhelmed the Evil Man with Yin Lightning and forced him to kneel and apologize to Bei Qing Si, while Corpse Mister’s humanoid monster injured an Emperor Realm expert who tried to intervene.
• Zhong Shan sent the Evil Man and his subordinates away, then took Bei Qing Si to the Great Jin Imperial Court Meeting Hall.
• Zhong Shan asked Bei Qing Si to leave with him, but she explained that her father had arranged for her to awaken her bloodline and retrieve the Bei family’s ancestral treasure.
• Bei Qing Si told Zhong Shan that the treasure suppressed the Water Lineage’s vein and that she expected to become its master soon.

Zhong Shan learned that the humanoid fruit was a Nether Essence Pill and planned to present it publicly as an Elixir of Eternal Life to stir up the Great Li Heavenly Dynasty. During the journey, he developed his Heavenly Laws! Heavy Waves technique and reached the Third Wave just as his army approached Great Li territory.

• Zhong Shan identified Nie Kuang as the Carefree Marquis of the Great Li Heavenly Dynasty and decided not to kill him unless he caused trouble again.
• Corpse Mister identified the humanoid fruit as a Nether Essence Pill that could extend life by a thousand years but brought severe karmic consequences.
• Zhong Shan planned to spread the claim that the pill was an Elixir of Eternal Life to draw cultivators' attention and create turmoil in Great Li.
• Zhong Shan tested his saber strikes with Blazing Fire and discovered that consecutive strikes at the same point could stack their force, naming the technique Heavenly Laws! Heavy Waves.
• After five months of practice, Zhong Shan reached the Third Wave, and Shui Wuhen announced that the army was about to enter Great Li territory.

A rumor that Zhong Shan possessed the Elixir of Eternal Life spread through Blazing Fire Holy Capital and beyond, drawing countless experts toward his route. As Zhong Shan’s envoy army traveled through the Great Li Heavenly Dynasty, Young Flying Marquis met them and offered an escort, but first asked them to withdraw while he captured rebels.

• A tavern patron claimed that Zhong Shan carried the Elixir of Eternal Life and intended to trade it with The Emperor, while another described the bloody battle in Wild Duck City that had supposedly decided its fate.
• Rumors of the Elixir of Eternal Life spread through Blazing Fire Holy Capital and surrounding cities, prompting experts to seek Zhong Shan and rush toward the capital.
• Shui Wuhen told Zhong Shan that they would soon reach a Great Li city and could ask its garrison for an escort.
• A group of more than three hundred Great Li officials approached Zhong Shan’s army, and their leader identified himself as Young Flying Marquis.
• After verifying Zhong Shan’s envoy credentials, Young Flying Marquis offered to escort the envoys and asked Zhong Shan to withdraw his army a hundred li while he captured rebels.

Young Flying Marquis used carefully staged arrows and battlefield manipulation to capture or scatter five fugitives, then escorted Zhong Shan’s army toward Blazing Fire Holy Capital. Rumors that Zhong Shan carried the Elixir of Eternal Life drew countless pursuers, whom Young Flying Marquis spent two months shaking off as the tale grew more exaggerated.

• Young Flying Marquis used arrows and the five fugitives’ fear to funnel them into an ambush, while Zhong Shan and Lin Xiao recognized his skill at manipulating their choices.
• Young Flying Marquis praised Zhong Shan’s Heavenfall Plan, and Zhong Shan urged the army to continue toward Blazing Fire Holy Capital.
• A month later, Young Flying Marquis found a city’s residents gathered to welcome Zhong Shan’s army and learned that rumors about the Elixir of Eternal Life had drawn attention.
• Young Flying Marquis told Zhong Shan to continue with the army while he dealt with pursuers, then spent two months shaking off the trackers.
• Wu Lao Liu exaggerated the escort army’s size and claimed he had sensed the Elixir of Eternal Life, helping spread even more sensational rumors.
• Zhong Shan praised Young Flying Marquis for driving away the pursuers with three hundred thousand men.

Zhong Shan traveled toward Blazing Fire Holy Capital with Young Flying Marquis and learned that Carefree Marquis Nie Kuang was the Great Li Emperor’s deceased elder brother reborn. As Zhong Shan’s army reached the capital, crowds gathered in hopes of seizing the rumored Elixir of Eternal Life, and an imperial force escorted the envoys to their residence.

• Young Flying Marquis asked Zhong Shan about the Elixir of Eternal Life, and Zhong Shan promised to show him the treasure in Blazing Fire Holy Capital.
• Zhong Shan explained that he had forced Carefree Marquis Nie Kuang to kneel and apologize, and Young Flying Marquis revealed that Nie Kuang had been the Great Li Emperor’s elder brother in his previous life.
• Young Flying Marquis brought his daughter Bing Bing back to the army and arranged for his subordinates to feed her.
• As Zhong Shan’s army neared Blazing Fire Holy Capital, news of his arrival drew huge crowds hoping to obtain the Elixir of Eternal Life.
• More than a hundred thousand people rushed toward Zhong Shan’s million-strong army, but Shui Wuhen ordered the archers to nock their arrows.
• A second million-strong force arrived with the Emperor’s order to escort the Great Luo Heavenly Dynasty’s envoys to the Southern Bright Tribute Hall, and Young Flying Marquis led Zhong Shan’s army onward.

Zhong Shan entered Blazing Fire Holy Capital, where crowds gathered in expectation of the Elixir of Eternal Life, and was summoned to meet Great Li Emperor Nie Fanchen. After Zhong Shan presented a bamboo flute from Gu Shentong, Nie Fanchen reacted with tenderness and sudden fury, leaving the reason for his response unknown.

• Zhong Shan's army arrived at the Southern Bright Tribute Hall, and Zhong Shan told his companions that he intended to prove the Elixir of Eternal Life was real.
• Nie Qingqing learned that Zhong Shan had come to the capital, while Tian Ling'er did not remember him and was told she would meet him in a few days.
• Carefree Marquis Nie Kuang recognized Zhong Shan and vowed to repay his past humiliation.
• An old eunuch brought Zhong Shan from the tribute hall to the Blazing Fire Holy Palace for a private audience with Nie Fanchen.
• Zhong Shan offered Nie Fanchen a sealed Jade Slip and an ordinary bamboo flute from Gu Shentong; Nie Fanchen seized the flute, and thunder shook Blazing Fire Holy Capital.

After Emperor Nie Fanchen reacted angrily to a bamboo flute, Zhong Shan visited Nie Qingqing to find Tian Ling'er. He learned that Ling Er had lost her memories of him, but her heart still responded to the name “Osmanthus Cake.”

• Nie Fanchen took Zhong Shan’s jade slip and dismissed him while thunder rolled over Blazing Fire Holy Capital.
• Zhong Shan visited Nie Qingqing’s manor to find Tian Ling’er, and Nie Qingqing told him that Ling Er had forgotten him.
• Tian Ling’er heard Zhong Shan say “Osmanthus Cake,” recognized the figure from her dreams, and confronted him without remembering who he was.
• Zhong Shan showed Tian Ling’er reminders of their past, but she rejected his claim that he was her husband and fled after reacting to “Osmanthus Cake.”
• Nie Qingqing explained that the Phoenix Clan sealed Ling Er’s memories of Zhong Shan during Nirvana Fire Rebirth to save her, and Zhong Shan accepted the sacrifice because she had survived.

Zhong Shan learned that only the Phoenix Supreme could safely undo Ling Er’s seal, so he asked Nie Qingqing to arrange meetings that might restore Ling Er’s memories. He also tasked Blazing Fire Wolf General with courting Qing Hong and began investigating the Vermilion Bird’s mysterious Immortal Fate.

• Nie Qingqing told Zhong Shan that the Phoenix Supreme could undo Ling Er’s seal by using Phoenix Song Ascending the Nine Heavens, though the technique would take a heavy toll.
• Qing Hong refused Zhong Shan’s request to meet the Phoenix Supreme, but Nie Qingqing agreed to create chances for him to speak with Ling Er.
• Zhong Shan ordered Blazing Fire Wolf General to win Qing Hong’s affection and make her his wife.
• Corpse Mister identified the red bird Ling Er carried as a Vermilion Bird and explained that beings with Immortal Fate faced Reverse Time in the mortal realm.
• Zhong Shan reasoned that the Vermilion Bird might have been born in this world and had its Fate Dao concealed by the Phoenix Supreme.
• Three days later, Zhong Shan brought Blazing Fire Wolf General to meet Qing Hong while Nie Qingqing arranged for Zhong Shan to see Ling Er.

Zhong Shan began helping Tian Ling'er recover her lost memories by recounting their past, but Carefree Marquis interrupted and attacked her. Zhong Shan defeated and expelled him, then resumed the story, leaving Tian Ling'er fascinated by the hammock they had used together.

• Carefree Marquis learned that Tian Ling'er was at Qingqing Princess Manor and led his Emperor Realm subordinates there.
• Zhong Shan urged Blazing Fire Wolf General to meet Qing Hong, then went with Nie Qingqing to see Tian Ling'er.
• Zhong Shan asked Tian Ling'er about her lost memories, but remembering her injury caused her pain, so he offered to tell their past as a story.
• Carefree Marquis tried to force a bracelet onto Tian Ling'er, and Zhong Shan struck him with Yin Lightning before throwing him out of the manor.
• Zhong Shan began recounting how he first went to Kaiyang Sect, and Tian Ling'er recognized the Osmanthus Cake and eagerly tried out a hammock.

Zhong Shan recounted his shared past with Tian Ling'er, hoping to stir her sealed memories, then represented Great Luo Heavenly Dynasty at Great Li’s court. He denied possessing the Elixir of Eternal Life but presented a mysterious object for Nie Fanchen to examine, leaving the court focused on its arrival.

• Zhong Shan gave Tian Ling'er Osmanthus Cakes and told her their past, causing her to weep as painful memories seemed to return.
• Zhong Shan continued the story over four days, and Tian Ling'er left to think it over while Nie Qingqing doubted the seal could be undone so easily.
• Zhong Shan learned that the Blazing Fire Wolf General still had not seen Qing Hong despite his assignment to seduce her.
• Zhong Shan entered Great Li’s court as Great Luo’s envoy, presented spirit fruits, and received a Thousand Autumns Fruit from Nie Fanchen.
• Carefree Marquis Nie Kuang questioned Zhong Shan about the Elixir of Eternal Life, and Zhong Shan denied having it before claiming he had a mysterious life-extending object.
• Nie Fanchen agreed to examine the object, and Lin Xiao brought the Nine Dragons Crystal Cover into the court.

Zhong Shan offered the Elixir of Eternal Life in exchange for permission to take his wife, Princess Ling'er, home, but Zhao Tian Sha arrived with a rival marriage request. The court erupted as Carefree Marquis and Young Flying Marquis also asked to marry Ling'er, leaving her fate undecided.

• Zhong Shan revealed the sinister Elixir of Eternal Life, and Nie Fanchen confirmed that it could extend a person's lifespan by a thousand years.
• Zhong Shan asked Nie Fanchen to let him take Princess Ling'er home, explaining that they were already married and offering the elixir in exchange.
• Zhao Tian Sha arrived seeking peace on behalf of the Great Cheng Emperor Dynasty and requested Princess Ling'er as his bride.
• Carefree Marquis Nie Kuang asked Nie Fanchen to arrange his marriage to Ling'er.
• Young Flying Marquis also asked to marry Ling'er, adding a fourth suitor to the dispute.

Nie Fanchen set two examinations to decide which of four suitors would marry Princess Ling'er, while Zhong Shan made plans with his allies and the verified Elixir of Eternal Life stirred the Blazing Fire Holy Capital. The chapter ended with news of the elixir spreading rapidly beyond the capital.

• Zhong Shan, Zhao Tian Sha, Nie Kuang, and Young Flying Marquis each asked Nie Fanchen to grant him a marriage with Princess Ling'er.
• Nie Fanchen ordered a Civil Examination and a martial examination, with Princess Ling'er judging the civil contest, and allowed each suitor to meet her once every five days under supervision.
• Zhong Shan told Lin Xiao and Liu Wushuang to help Blazing Fire win over Qing Hong within a month, then ordered Shui Wuhen and the Zhong Family Army to support Corpse Mister's plan.
• People across the Blazing Fire Holy Capital discussed the Elixir of Eternal Life after Nie Fanchen verified it, and reports spread to distant cities.

Zhong Shan opened paid viewing of the Elixir of Eternal Life and turned the Blazing Fire Holy Capital into a vast network of queues, with visitors paying a Spirit Stone and writing blessings for him and Princess Ling'er. As the crowds gathered, Ling'er learned that Zhong Shan was seeking a “Billion Blessing Sound” to help restore her lost memories and found herself worrying about his task.

• Shui Wuhen erected Zhong Shan’s stele announcing paid viewing of the Elixir of Eternal Life and requiring visitors to write blessings for Zhong Shan and Princess Ling'er.
• Visitors formed four hundred queues, paid a Spirit Stone to view the Nether Essence Pill for five breaths, and spread the lines across the Blazing Fire Holy Capital.
• Nie Fanchen heard the old Eunuch report Zhong Shan’s scheme, while Carefree Marquis discovered his people had left to join the queues.
• Nie Qingqing told Ling Er that the Emperor had allowed Zhong Shan, Carefree Marquis, Young Flying Marquis, and Zhao Tian Sha to pursue her, and revealed that Zhong Shan was gathering a “Billion Blessing Sound.”
• Ling Er reacted with excitement to learning that Zhao Tian Sha was her senior brother, then grew concerned about whether Zhong Shan could gather enough blessings in the four months allowed.

At Smoke Sea, Zhong Shan helped Tian Ling'er catch a fish before the four suitors arrived to spend time with her. Zhao Tian Sha, Carefree Marquis, and Young Flying Marquis appeared, the last bringing his daughter Bing Bing, while Ling Er's feelings shifted between her senior brother and Zhong Shan.

• Nie Qingqing told Tian Ling'er that crowds across Blazing Fire Holy Capital were lining up to write blessings, while Zhong Shan entrusted the Elixir of Eternal Life's security to Corpse Mister.
• Zhong Shan arrived at Smoke Sea with Blazing Fire Wolf General, Lin Xiao, and Liu Wushuang as Ling Er and Nie Qingqing prepared the fishing area.
• Zhong Shan taught Ling Er to fish, and she excitedly caught a large sea fish without using spells.
• Zhao Tian Sha arrived, and Ling Er greeted him joyfully before noticing Zhong Shan's loneliness and feeling an inexplicable sadness.
• Carefree Marquis arrived and tried to ingratiate himself with Ling Er, who ignored him, while Zhong Shan exchanged greetings with him.
• Young Flying Marquis arrived carrying his daughter Bing Bing, who announced that he was her father, and Carefree Marquis mocked him for bringing his daughter while pursuing Ling Er.

Nie Qingqing arranged a fishing contest for Tian Ling'er’s suitors, but Zhong Shan quietly outdid them and deepened his bond with Ling Er. After Carefree Marquis and Zhao Tian Sha quit fishing, Nie Qingqing proposed a magic-based fish-cooking contest, which was about to begin.

• Nie Qingqing led Tian Ling'er and the others to the Fishing Platform, where the group fished without using magic.
• Tian Ling'er caught the first fish, and Zhong Shan encouraged her with a thumbs-up while the others praised her.
• Bing Bing teased Carefree Marquis for catching nothing, and Zhong Shan revealed that his many-hook line had caught twelve fish at once.
• Carefree Marquis and Zhao Tian Sha stopped fishing, prompting Tian Ling'er to reluctantly put down her rod.
• Nie Qingqing proposed that the four men each catch a fish with one magical move and prepare a dish for Ling Er to judge.
• As Carefree Marquis stepped forward to go first, Zhong Shan brought out Osmanthus Cake, a private token of affection that only Ling Er and Nie Qingqing understood.

Carefree Marquis, Zhao Tian Sha, and Young Flying Marquis each demonstrated a spectacular way to catch a fish, turning the contest into a display of power. Zhong Shan took his turn last and stirred the seawater by hand, leaving everyone wondering what he would do.

• Bing Bing broke the standoff by asking for Osmanthus Cake, and Zhong Shan handed it out to the group.
• Carefree Marquis used the Nirvana Fire Wheel to boil part of the sea and caught a heat-resistant fish.
• Zhao Tian Sha drew his sword with the Heaven Slaying Sword Drawing Technique, cleaving a thousand-mile chasm through the sea before taking a fish.
• Young Flying Marquis poured purple liquid into the ocean, drawing ten thousand fish toward shore and selecting one.
• Zhong Shan walked to the seaside, crouched down, and gently stirred the water as Carefree Marquis and the crowd questioned his approach.

Zhong Shan amazed everyone by making fish across the sea leap into the air, then prepared Five-Colored Poisonous Pufferfish soup for Tian Ling'er. The meal ended with Tian Ling'er upset after she falsely praised Zhao Tian Sha's soup and watched Bing Bing claim Zhong Shan's bowl.

• Zhong Shan released Red Phoenix Mist into the sea, causing fish across a vast area to leap and frenzy, then caught a Five-Colored Poisonous Pufferfish and recalled the mist.
• Zhong Shan and Young Flying Marquis prepared soup while Zhao Tian Sha's subordinates cooked and Carefree Marquis's group burned their fish and left in embarrassment.
• Tian Ling'er tasted the three soups and found Zhong Shan's the best, but told Zhao Tian Sha that his was better.
• Bing Bing praised Zhong Shan's soup and claimed its bowl, leaving Tian Ling'er distressed and prompting Nie Qingqing to end the gathering.

Zhong Shan learned that Nie Fanchen planned to help Nie Kuang prepare a poem for the Civil Examination, giving him an unfair advantage. He remained confident that he could win by understanding the examination’s unstated subject, while the competition was set to begin in five days.

• Blazing Fire recounted how Lin Xiao and Liu Wushuang tricked him into grabbing Qing Hong’s chest and getting slapped, and Zhong Shan praised their matchmaking scheme.
• Nie Fanchen’s eunuch reported that he could not investigate the strange cage around the Nether Essence Pill or see through Corpse Mister, and said Zhong Shan and Young Flying Marquis were dominating the rivalry for Princess Ling’er.
• Nie Kuang begged Nie Fanchen to help him beat Zhong Shan in the Civil Examination, and Nie Fanchen agreed to write him a poem capable of triggering a celestial phenomenon.
• Shui Wuhen, Liu Wushuang, and Lin Xiao complained that the examination rules favored Nie Kuang, but Zhong Shan said the Great Li Emperor’s poem would not guarantee Nie Kuang’s victory.
• Zhong Shan explained that his earlier success with Man Jiang Hong came from matching its artistic conception to the examination subject, and said the subject for this examination lay in each contestant’s heart.